On July 13 at about 6:22 a.m., a Santa Monica motorcycle officer patrolling the Lincoln Boulevard corridor observed two women and a man involved in some sort of altercation near the intersection of Lincoln and Ocean Park boulevards.
Other officers responded to assist and detained the parties, quickly determining that a battery had just occurred at the McDonald's in the 2800 block of Lincoln.
The suspect, identified as Bathsheba Balban, followed the victim into the bathroom at the restaurant and for an unknown reason punched the victim twice, once in her left arm and once on the left side of the victim's face.
When Balban fled the McDonald's, the victim's boyfriend, who did not witness the assault, hopped on his bicycle and followed the suspect northbound. The victim was uninjured and declined medical treatment.
Balban, who is on probation, was arrested for battery and transported to the Santa Monica jail for booking.
Balban, 41, homeless, had bail set at $20,000.
Note: Crime Watch is culled from reports provided by the Santa Monica Police Department. These are arrests only. All parties are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.